Economic rot started at the top

The ultimate in the ‘we are all to blame’ mantra was the abridged version of a speech given by Gerard Howlin to the MacGill Summer School, Monday, July 21 and published in your paper on July 23.

Reckless decisions by a small number of people in charge of Irish financial institutions over the best part of a decade rendered them insolvent. In addition government was simultaneously spending billions equally recklessly because of decisions made by the small number of people in charge during the years of the boom.

As a result this country was bankrupt.